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Murphy Bank’s team has been the foundation for decades of growth.

Now, as the Fresno-based community bank undergoes a leadership transition in the coming days, the future of the bank stands on the shoulders of a strong banking team.

Mike Falge will step down as CEO and Steve Jones will be the new CEO of Murphy Bank effective Jan. 10. Falge says that Jones will helm an exceptional team — most of whom have been with the company for at least a decade.

 

A good team

“It’s fine to say that the CEO is responsible for everything, but at the end of the day, the team underneath the CEO is the one that is doing a lot of the groundwork. And when you have a good team, you can really perform well. He’s stepping into a really good team,” Falge said.

Some members of the team started at the bank when Falge did in 1989. Many on the senior management team have been with the bank upwards of 10 years, which Falge said allows the team to keep running strong.

 

 

Falge was hired at Murphy Bank in 1989 right out of college and worked his way up to CEO – a role he held for 20 years. For the past 20 years he has been continuing a legacy of longevity at the family-owned bank.

Longevity of a team comes down to the culture within the bank — and whether the team has the tools to do what’s expected of them, Falge said.

“You can have these grand expectations of people, and people really want to succeed. But if you don’t give them the tools to succeed, the markets to pursue, the capital to invest, then that is disheartening to the employee,” he said.

When employees own their success, they want to grow, participate and help the company grow.

Falge won’t be leaving just yet though — he will remain on the board of directors until the spring during the time of transition.

 

A Valley man

He says Jones’ familiarity with Fresno provides valuable continuity to the bank because of its Valley roots. Falge also said the Murphy Bank team is confident in Jones’ abilities with his detailed banking resume.

“Steve’s a great fit because he knows the Valley. He knows the geography, he’s local, graduated from Bullard High School,” Falge said.

Jones brings more than 30 years of banking experience to Murphy Bank. He will transition from his current role of chief operating officer at Suncrest Bank, which is slated to be absorbed into Citizens Business Bank on Jan. 7. There he delved into the fintech world when banks scrambled to get Paycheck Protection Program loans out to businesses in partnership with the Small Business Administration.

“He is well-respected in the industry, he is well-versed in the community and he’s proven he can work well with different types of teams,” Falge said.

Jones desired to stay in the Central Valley as he looked beyond his role at Suncrest Bank. He and several senior staff members at Murphy Bank shared camaraderie over the years, making it a seamless fit.

“It’s just this whole circle of friendship that we had and that we were able to build on,” Jones said. “That was important because I’m the first CEO really that hasn’t been brought up through the ranks.”

 

Career capstone

Jones calls this the capstone of his career. He plans to help Murphy Bank continue to do what they’ve done so well, he said.

“They don’t need a new direction, they don’t need a change. It’s really to continue to build on all the successes that they’ve had,” Jones said.

Jones had previously held the role of CEO at Security First Bank. He was one of the founders and organizers of Security First Bank, starting as the chief financial officer and eventually leading as president and CEO.

The banking itself will be different as Murphy Bank is primarily a retail bank. While it does offer some small business and commercial loans, it specializes in auto leasing programs and mobile home lending.

The pandemic catapulted many banking leaders into a fintech-focused business model. During the administration of the Paycheck Protection Program for small business loans in 2020, Jones adapted to partnerships with fintech companies that would help speed up the loan writing process.

 

Changing times

Though the past two years have developed banking trends in record speed, the industry has changed through the decades since Falge stepped into the field in his early 20s.

Falge said the biggest change he’s witnessed in the banking industry is the shrinking number of locally owned financial institutions in the area.

Of the locally-owned, locally-capitalized community banks in Fresno still standing since he entered his career, there are only three left including Murphy Bank, Falge said.

The others are Fresno First Bank and Central Valley Community Bank.

He said consolidation took place specifically after the Great Recession in 2008 and was due to a plethora of regulations.

“There are no banks under $100 million right now. You can’t do it. You have to be bigger. And so how do you get bigger? Banks are coming together to merge to get economies of scale to deal with the incredible regulation that has happened,” he said.

 

New scrutiny

Falge said that many people don’t realize that after the Great Recession and housing crisis in 2008, most banks that made it through alive were not creating loans that caused the crisis.

“And yet they changed all the rules, all the banks that weren’t doing anything bad, to this onerous regulation,” he said. “The regulatory environment, while necessary to curtail some bad behavior, doesn’t take into account that a lot of banks weren’t even doing that. They were making good loans to people who could repay – not ninja loans to people that had no intention of repaying.”

The consolidation of the community banking industry and the regulation that’s come out of the Great Recession has doubly affected the shrinkage of local banks.

“You used to be able to get a home loan from your community bank,” he said.

It’s not so likely anymore.

However, there are plenty of opportunities for community banks to thrive. He said that community banks can benefit from finding their niche, and the few left in Fresno all represent a niche of their own. For Murphy Bank, it’s mobile home loans. Community banks also provide a personable approach to finance.

“There is still something to be said for face-to-face, handshake-to-handshake,” Falge said.

At local banks, the people on the phone are ones who can make decisions, and he says that’s the benefit.

While there are less community banks, the community banks remaining are bigger.

“I’m excited to see where Steve will see we can improve,” he said.

 

The long haul

Longevity is a cultural norm at Murphy Bank, with Falge finishing up over 30 years with the company.

“That’s unheard of almost in banking for sure, but almost anywhere,” Jones said.

When Jones accepted the position, he took it with the next generation of Murphy Bank in mind.

“It’s going to be important for me as a senior leader to help them build up and bring in those next senior leaders, the next CEO,” Jones said.

As Jones steps into the role, he hopes to integrate his passion for community outreach into his banking role. He is the treasurer of the board for the Fresno Madera Habitat for Humanity, which is an important part of his life as well. He hopes to integrate volunteering and investing in the community, specifically for affordable housing, while at Murphy Bank.

“It just is a perfect opportunity to take my 35-plus years of banking experience and build on that and help Murphy Bank as long as I can,” Jones said.

“Murphy Bank is just such an exceptionally run bank that I plan on learning as much from them – meaning all of Murphy Bank’s staff, executives and board – as I hope they get to gain from me,” Jones added.